Digital Arts and Game Animation – The Things You Need to Know

Game animation is a very popular job today, one that is necessary for the creation of any video game. Some prefer doing 2D work while others stick to 3D work. Whichever you choose, you need to know some things before making that choice and starting your journey into the world of game animation. A digital artist could easily make the transition from illustration or any other type of digital art to game animation, yet a couple of things can make that transition easier.

The Right Knowledge

There are plenty of tutorials on YouTube which can get you started on game animation. The tutorials wildly differ in quality and quantity, and many cannot cover everything, or do it coherently. Stick to multiple tutorials, so that you can compare their data and views on animation. If you end up learning the wrong things, it will be difficult to unlearn them.

There are specialized courses on animation on sites like Udemy or Coursera. Take your pick, but make sure to look at reviews of the said courses, so that you don’t end up not learning something you need, especially if you are going to pay for it.

While you can obtain the necessary knowledge from courses and tutorials, it is also important to learn from examples and looking at great and successful animations can help you with that.

If you already have knowledge of the digital arts, or a degree, even, many things should come much easier. Having previous knowledge about art can make your road to becoming a game animator much quicker.

The Tools of the Trade – The Software You Need

You cannot make animations without the right software. If 3D animations are your passion, then getting Blender should be more than enough for starters. Blender is free and available on plenty of systems. It is used for animations, 3D models and many more things. It has an active community which engages with newcomers on a daily basis.

Your paid software of choice should be Autodesk Maya or 3DS Max. Both of these programs are well-established and used by professionals throughout the world. There is plenty of support from both Autodesk and the community.

2D animations can be made in Adobe products such as After Effects and Photoshop and Animate. There are more programs you can use, yet Adobe products are often considered the best for various digital art use cases.

Game animation does not differ from other forms of animation. You will work with a team and cooperate. You will also have to spend a lot of time alone, working out the details of your project and slowly making it move. Learn as much as you can but do not let that inhibit your from being creative.

Do not spend too much time thinking or watching tutorials, but instead use your energy to create your own environments and characters. Game animation is still digital art, and as an artist, you should start creating.